Right path to power

Upon returning to her office, Lin Xiao saw Wan Yingyong standing at the door, and her face immediately fell.

"Greetings, County Magistrate Lin. I am Wan Yingyong from Hengtong Road Construction. Please forgive my sudden visit today. It's just that County Magistrate Lin is very busy, but the matter is rather urgent, so..."

"Come in and talk."

Lin Xiao said coldly, completely ignoring Wan Yingyong's outstretched hand.

He was already annoyed by Wei Anshun's previous greetings, and now that Wei Anshun had come unannounced, he naturally wouldn't give him a friendly look.

"Mr. Wan, I am indeed quite busy. Please keep this brief."

"OK."

After his opening remarks, Wan Yingyong launched into a long talk about the glorious history of Hengtong Road Construction: how many projects it had undertaken in the city, how many of them had received attention from city leaders, how Acting Mayor Ma Guanghua had inspected the company multiple times, and even listed several former leaders who had been promoted to the provincial level and showed their concern for the company.

In short: Hengtong has a huge network of relationships, and its leaders attach great importance to it.

The implication is—it all depends on whether you, Lin Xiao, will give me face.

Lin Xiao listened while reviewing the documents, but she understood the general meaning of everything.

He put down his pen and said calmly, "We welcome Hengtong Road Construction to develop in Fuchuan. Fuchuan County is in dire need of development and there will be many opportunities in the future. We welcome capable and responsible enterprises to jointly build Fuchuan. The county party committee and county government will create a fair and just business environment and are committed to providing good services."

Wan Yingyong listened while sneering inwardly—it was all empty talk, platitudes, and official jargon; there wasn't a single useful piece of information.

Does this kid really not give me any face at all?

In fact, a hint of mockery also flashed in Lin Xiao's eyes—did he think he could do whatever he wanted just by saying a few names?

"County Chief Lin, I heard that Mayor Ma recently approved a special fund of five million yuan for road maintenance in the county. This is precisely the area that Hengtong Road Construction is best at. I think we can help the county share the burden and make our due contribution to the county's development. In addition, there are many projects in the construction of Fuchuan New City that we can participate in."

Lin Xiao smiled. This guy had quite an appetite: "It seems that President Wan is very familiar with the situation in the county. Then you should also know that the county party committee and county government have long made it clear that all kinds of engineering projects must strictly adhere to the principle of open bidding and eliminate human interference. Although I am the acting county head, I can't take the lead in breaking the rules, can I?"

"County Chief Lin's statement is too absolute. As the saying goes, things are all about human effort. Although rules are made by people, special circumstances can be treated specially."

Wan Yingyong chuckled and glanced at Lin Xiao before continuing, "I love making friends, and I'll never treat them unfairly. I'm sure County Chief Lin will realize that in the future. By the way, I'm quite familiar with Secretary Zhu, and I'm sure she'll welcome Hengtong Road Construction..."

Lin Xiao smiled and nodded, then interrupted, "I trust President Wan. Why don't you go check on Secretary Zhu? She should be here."

With that, he got up and saw the guest out.

Wan Yingyong was stunned for a few seconds. He really didn't expect that when he mentioned Zhu Lishu, Lin Xiao would simply see him out.

But he suppressed his anger and knocked on Juliet's office door.

After a conversation, Julie Shu expressed her welcome, but also made it clear that the county government would take the lead in these specific tasks and she would not interfere.

Finally, he went into Tang Meiyun's office again, hoping for a pleasant collaboration in the future.

In the following days, several more construction bosses came to see Lin Xiao, all claiming to be Han Chengdong, the secretary-general of the municipal government.

However, Lin Xiao treated everyone equally and handled matters officially.

As various projects progressed, the county also began to issue tenders one after another.

A week later, the results of the public bidding for the road upgrade and renovation project in Fuchuan County were released.

Hengtong Road Construction won all three bids.

Lin Xiao was very surprised to see this result.

With doubts in his mind, he called Ji Kaichen, the director of the bidding and tendering center, into his office.

"County Head, we strictly followed the procedures in this bidding process. No one would dare to mess around! Hengtong Road Construction has strong capabilities, rich experience, and the lowest bid, so it's normal for them to win the bid. Rest assured, with the county taking this so seriously, who would dare to act recklessly?"

Seeing his confident demeanor, Lin Xiao became even more suspicious.

Just then, the internal phone rang; it was Wei Anshun calling.

Lin Xiao hesitated for a moment, but still answered the call.

"County Chief Lin, thank you so much. The bidding results were excellent. I'll invite General Manager Wan to dinner another day."

During the phone call, Wei Anshun made no attempt to hide his joy.

He felt that although Lin Xiao spoke with righteous indignation, he was actually quite respectful.

Perhaps this kind of person is worth getting to know better?

Lin Xiao said calmly, "Director Wei, you're too kind. There's no need for dinner yet. The bidding results are still being publicized, and the final result is not yet certain."

"Yes, yes, let's talk about it after the public announcement period ends. Haha, don't worry, Mr. Wan is very loyal to his friends, you'll see later. When you come to the city sometime, let's have a good get-together."

"it is good."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Xiao told Ji Kaichen to go back as well.

He then called Liu Yun and asked her to come to his office.

"Please have someone investigate Wan Yingyong of Hengtong Road Construction for me. See who he has been in contact with recently, and whether any of them are related to the project bidding. I suspect there's something fishy about this bidding process; it's impossible that he won all three bids by chance."

"Okay, I'll arrange it right away."

"By the way, keep it a secret."

"Know."

Just as Liu Yun was arranging for people to begin the investigation, Wan Yingyong was enjoying drinks with some people at a high-end private club in the county town.

"Distinguished leaders, let me first raise a glass to everyone to thank you for your support."

Tang Meiyun, seated at the head of the table, picked up her glass of red wine, took a small sip, and blushed, looking mature and charming.

Seeing this, Wan Yingyong couldn't help but swallow hard.

Zhang Zhengguo, the director of the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau, had a flushed face, clearly having drunk quite a bit, and his eyes were already glazed over. He raised his glass and said, "The public notice period will end in two more days. I wish General Manager Wan a prosperous future!"

Ji Kaichen also laughed and said, "That kid surnamed Lin even called me over for questioning. I told him that everyone knows the county is keeping a close eye on things, and no one dares to do anything reckless, so he didn't say anything more."

Liu Xiaojie, deputy director of the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau, sneered, "This is Fuchuan County. No matter who is the county head, it's still us who do the work."

Wan Yingyong nodded and said, "That's right. Of course we should listen to the leaders' requirements, but we also need to analyze the specific situation in our actual work. I have spoken to several leaders in the city, and they all welcome me to develop in the county. Now that the company has won the bid, the most important thing is to finish the project and get the payment as soon as possible. No one will care about anything else."

A deputy county head who is a member of the Standing Committee, a director of the bidding and tendering center, and the director and deputy director of the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau—these are all key figures who can influence the bidding and tendering process, plus a bidding company.

The implications of this are self-evident.

However, this does not constitute any valid evidence.

However, before the public announcement period was over, they couldn't help but celebrate.

This is far too unbridled.

Wan Yingyong drank his wine while glancing around smugly.

Having worked on municipal projects throughout the state for so long, he has his own set of methods for dealing with people.

After the dinner party ended, Wan Yingyong arranged for Zhang Zhengguo and the others to rest in the VIP room on the top floor. He then escorted Tang Meiyun downstairs and handed her a bag.

"County Magistrate Tang, this is just a small token of my appreciation."

"this......"

"Don't worry, how much could a bag cost?"

"oh......"

Tang Meiyun declined verbally, but her hand had already reached out. From the moment she touched the bag, she knew that this bag was "different from others".

However, a camera captured this scene from a window not far away.

After seeing Tang Meiyun off, Wan Yingyong also went to the top floor.

"Bring me your best technicians. If they provide excellent service, I'll pay extra..."

"Alright, alright, bosses, please wait a moment while I call the girls out."

Soon, a row of alluring women dressed in sheer gauze, each carrying a small white bag, filed in, stood in a line, and bowed, saying, "Good evening, boss."

Her fair skin, delicate voice, and snow-white breasts immediately made the men's eyes light up.

They began to look her up and down, noting whether she was thinner, fairer-skinned, fuller-figured, or more mature... each with their own preferences.

After choosing their female companions, they went to their respective rooms to relax.

In the lobby, a young man with a slicked-back appearance sat on the sofa, looking like a seasoned veteran of the pleasure quarters. After making a phone call, he continued chatting with the woman waiting beside him.

Not long after, a group of people appeared downstairs.